U-Boats Aren't the Only Things to Crash
by benji-boi-narcissism.docx
Summary: Europe is in the Second World War. Germans are on the coast of the U.S., sinking ships that bring supplies to the Allies. Unfortunately, one of the U-Boats was sunk, and its sole survivor, Ludwig Beilschmidt, washed ashore the Jersey coastline. Dehydrated, alone, and exhausted, he gets found by a young American, Alfred F. Jones. #Germerica #America/Germany #Germany/America #WW2
1. Chapter 1: Rescue

All he really knew at that moment was that he was wet, tired, soot was caked in his hair, and blood dripped from his clothes as much as the salt from the water made them stiffen. It was barely the eve of morning. He tried to move a shaky hand through his hair as he made his way through the now shallow water, but his focus needed to remain on moving his beaten legs to the rocks along the Jersey coast. _How did this happen?_ His mind echoed, a tingle in his neck making his upper body shake and force him to fall to his knees, the brush washing his damp pants.

He'd just escaped his station on a u-boat, off the American coast, his orders to watch for boats to sink and push the American people further off the edge of fear. He hadn't had enough sleep the night prior, his lids had been trying to close too often, too heavy. It was all his fault, he kept telling himself, that he hadn't spotted that one ship with fucking _torpedos_ , and now he was the only one to survive by blending in with the bloodied water and bodies, face down, while the rest of his crewmates were shot or drowned by the American retaliation force.

The crackle of bullets whizzed through his hearing, forcing his strained eyes to look up across what appeared to be brown beaches, the tide reaching a high, seagulls dancing amongst the waves and garbage littering the sand. Patches of grass decorated the land before dunes went straight up, by at least ten feet, rocks embedded in the land. The east coast. His throat was parched, the water below him taunting his cravings. The rocks, little islands protecting the beach, he just needed to get to them and rest. Please. Just for a few moments. _Let me live_ , he begged a dead God. _Let me redeem myself_ , his mind cried as his worn body reached the first island it could, laying across the jagged surface and letting his eyes close. " _Save me_ ," he murmured as his consciousness went under, the sun beating on his back and the hungry waves trying to drag him back out to it's grip once more…

"Hey!"

His body jerked in a nervous response at the noise. His vision was still blurry in the mid-afternoon sun, his throat unconsciously trying to swallow the nothing that had been in his mouth for at least two days. The German could see the faint outline of a man, however, and he appeared to be getting closer to him.

With the last strength he could use in his arm, Ludwig lifted the left side of his body and used his right to take the armband from his biceps. He had to survive and _that_ wouldn't help him.

The struggle to get the revealing item off his arm continued as the man got closer, and Ludwig's faint heart began beating harder in his chest. The speed releasing adrenaline, giving the last strength he could use to rip the article off his arm and toss it in the water. He ripped off his medals as well. He couldn't take off his uniform, yet luckily it would look like an American officer's uniform, just tattered and bloody.

"Hey! You 'kay?" The man shouted once more, within Ludwig's sights. Ludwig still couldn't see properly, probably a side-affect of being dehydrated, but he could make out wind-swept blond hair, a tough frame, and a worried smile that became more anxious the closer he got.

"Dude, you don't look good." The American deadpanned as he was only two feet from Ludwig.

To which the German couldn't help but weakly laugh at, which came out more as a serious of pained grunts than expressions of joy. "That's because I'm not," he croaked back, hoping his German accent was disguised by the rasp of his throat.

"Jesus, where ya from, guy?" The blond asked worriedly, rushing the rest of the two feet to hold the unknown German in his arms. Ludwig could only grunt in response as his lids began to shut again, always in the face of danger it seemed. He was shaken until he opened his eyes again. "Hey, don't sleep now, got it? Let me get you back to my place, I'll help ya, 'kay?"

Ludwig looked up once more into the face of his savior. The guy was about as old as him, maybe a bit older, no more than 22. He had a nice face, square jaw, typical American nose, kinda thin, pink lips, and glasses covering the deepest shade of blue Ludwig had seen since being under the ocean in the u-boat. His skin appeared smooth except for the wrinkles forming in the corners of his eyes and the in the middle of his forehead. He was so concerned for a stranger it made Ludwig's heart ache for some unknown reason.

Overwhelmed by emotion he couldn't express, Ludwig pulled the American's face near his with his free hand with the last of his energy and pecked the blond's nose. "Thank you," he whispered before closing his eyes once more in comfort, the scent of ocean and smoke filling his nose and the sound of waves lulling him into a peaceful sleep. The jittery American easily picked up the sleeping body and carried him back to his little beach hut in a hurry to save the man he'd just met.


	2. Chapter 2: Interrogation and Water

Ludwig woke up to the sound of waves. He jolted his body to sit up only to land back down on the bed beneath him. He put his hand to his head in order to block some of the light from shining into his eyes. It was only making his headache worse. On the other side of the room, a door creaked open.

"Hey," a voice whispered. The door was shut gently and footsteps shuffled slowly over to the bed. The bed creaked slightly as someone sat down next to Ludwig's leg. "How ya holding up?" It was the voice of the man from the beach.

Ludwig tried to mimic his accent, he couldn't blow his cover. He was lucky enough to be a linguist so he knew English in the first place. "I have a headache." he whispered.

"I figured with your dehydration you'd have one," the man chuckled. "Here's some Bufferin for ya." Ludwig held out his hand to take the thick capsules. "And some water." The blond man picked up a glass of water from the nightstand and held it out to Ludwig.

"What is this?" Ludwig held up the pills.

"You must be really out of it," the man muttered. "They're a headache relief medication."

"Oh, thank you." He popped the pills into his mouth, and with the help from his savior, he sat up to drink the offered water.

"It'll work in a bit, just relax for now, kay?" The blond smiled.

Ludwig nodded in understanding. The man got up to leave but Ludwig suddenly reached out, grabbing his hand to prevent him from leaving. "You ok?" The man questioned.

"What, what is your name?" Ludwig let go of his hand.

The man laughed. "Guess I forgot, sorry. I'm Alfred. Alfred F. Jones." He held out his hand. Ludwig shook Alfred's hand. "You're Ludwig, right?" Alfred pointed at him, one hand on his hip.

Ludwig's heart skipped a beat. "H-how did you?"

"I saw the name stitched into your uniform." It was then that Ludwig realized he was wearing someone else's pajamas. His face flushed red."Sorry, I figured you'd be more comfy in not dripping wet, tattered clothing." Alfred's face was just smiling at Ludwig's, as if nothing was wrong with taking off a man's clothes and redressing him.

"Um, thank you." He muttered.

"No problem, get some rest. I'll be back later with some food." Alfred left the room, his footsteps echoing down the hall.

Ludwig pulled the covers up to his face, breathing in the clean linen. He replayed in his mind what had happened the past couple of days. The memories overwhelmed him, and he finally cried. He started sob uncontrollably. All of his friends were dead, he was alone in an enemy state, and he had nowhere to go. He didn't even know who was helping him or what their motivations were. He was so lost and alone. He had no idea what to do. He had no hope. All he could do right now was sleep. And so he did.

He awoke hours later, around evening. The light was less harsh and he felt a little more awake than before. His headache was nearly gone. Ludwig looked to the table next to him and saw a steaming bowl on the nightstand. In front of the bowl were more pills, and behind it, was another glass of water.

Ludwig drank the water, making him less thirsty, yet he was still clearly dehydrated to some degree. He took the pills and got them down with some of the soup. As he was eating Alfred walked in with another cup of water. "Hey, how you holding up?" He asked as he pulled a chair up to the bed.

Ludwig rested the bowl in his lap. "I am ok, and you?" His throat felt tight and dry.

"Good," the man smiled. "Headache gone?"

"Mostly," Ludwig whispered. He just wanted this man to accuse him of being his enemy and break the tension he felt in his chest already.

"That's good. I brought you more water, you should drink as much as you can." Alfred held the water out to him. Ludwig took it. As he drank, Alfred asked, "Why were you in the water?" His smile was gone. His eyes were focused, intent on clawing out the information as if he were a hawk.

Ludwig swallowed. "I was in a submarine for the navy. Off the coast. We came across an enemy sub, they blew ours up." He was admitting limited truths. "I was the only one who survived the explosion. I was out there, surrounded by the cold ocean, for 3 or so days until I washed ashore." He looked into Alfred's eyes. They looked softer. Alfred shifted his gaze down.

"Oh, I'm sorry." He looked back up. Ludwig looked like he was sweating. "That's, that's really hard to go through. It's a good thing we got boys like you defending us from such tragedies." Alfred smiled faintly. Ludwig's throat felt even tighter. He wasn't doing anything that would help this man. He should hate him. But Ludwig hoped, for some reason, that he didn't.

"Yeah," he agreed.

"So," Alfred leaned back in his chair. "What's with the name Ludwig?"

Ludwig scratched at his neck. He knew what Alfred was thinking of him. He needed a fast lie. "My parents immigrated from Germany during the Great War. I was young when we moved, grew up here." That sounded believable.

"You're German?" Alfred asked, leaning forward again. Shit.

"But now I am American." Ludwig defended.

"I'm surprised they'd let you fight, you know, conflicting interest." Alfred piqued. That was a fair point.

"I needed to to show my loyalty."

"You seem very loyal."

"I am."

"Good."

"Thank you." Ludwig went back to eating.

"For what?" Alfred asked with some surprise.

"For taking me into your home and helping me." Ludwig tried to smile.

Alfred smiled in kind, his tension going slowly away. He was wrong about his suspisions. "It's just a small beach cottage, nothing fancy. And I couldn't just let someone die like that." He started to stand and took the empty bowl and cup from Ludwig. "Get some more rest." Alfred whispered as he left.

Once the door was shut, he did.


	3. Chapter 3: Dreams and Home

Hey guys! Quick warning, this get graphic for the first couple of paragraphs, so watch out! Also, if you like star wars imagines or fanfiction, head over to and look for works by AllessaRen2198, she takes requests for imagines as well. Also, if you are interested in other fics by me, my account on archive is quizzletriangle3. There are other one-shots and stories there if you wanna check them out. Thanks for reading guys! More soon.

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Ludwig felt like he was drowning, all he could see was blue as he choked on cold salt water. He could hear the crash of waves pounding against his head, the heat of fire near his body from broken parts of the sinking submarine, the pressure of the cabin trying to suck him down in a whirlpool to the bottom of the ocean. He could hear his fellow men cry out before gurgling, being plunged under by the suction. All around him was the destruction of the U-Boat, the metals pieces on fire, making them too hot to cling onto to float. The American ship loomed in front of him, the others that were able to swim hard enough to remain above the water crying out for mercy in broken english.

"Fire, boys!" was all Ludwig heard before the crack of the ship's machine guns roared to life. With each pound, Ludwig's heart matched the beat. He forced his head under to water, trying not to move so they would think he was a floating corpse not worth shooting. If the bullet missed a man, the water would absorb it and its sound. When it hit men, all he could hear was crying out or silence, the thud of a bullet going into meat being heard all around him. He was fading, no oxygen. To breath, he'd look up for a second, seeing blood spurt in a misty cloud into the air for a split second before the man would either slump over and float aimlessly, or sink beneath the cold blue waves. Once the guns stop, the engine of the ship moved it away. Ludwig remained face down in the water for an hour after the ship was gone, only moving for breath. He looked up, red was everywhere. The sky, red dawn, the ocean waters, red, his uniform, red. He grabbed onto a scrap of the U-boat that was not aflame, floating along until he passed out. He woke up to blue, blue everywhere. Blue sky. Blue ocean. Blue eyes. The deepest shade of blue eyes he had ever seen. He couldn't breathe, but it wasn't the ocean that prevented him from breathing, that he knew.

Ludwig woke up with a loud gasp, taking in as much air as his lungs could hold. A nightmare, that's what he had. What he couldn't figure out though was why he saw Alfred's eyes staring into his own with so much warmth. Ludwig shifted around the bed, sitting up, gently trying to stand. He didn't know what he was doing, he faintly thought about looking at the house he was in. He noted that it was still dark out, middle of the night. He opened the door gently, finding himself in a small, dark hallway. The floor creaked a little as he moved down the hall to his left. He walked into the opening of what looked like a living room. A couch was placed against a wall, beneath a window on the left, on the right was the kitchen. Ludwig saw the door straight across the room. He walked over to it, opened the door, and found himself facing the ocean. It was a beach house. He was about 20 meters from the ocean. Still over 7000 kilometers from Germany. From home. And he had no idea of he would ever be allowed back into his home country. He wouldn't be allowed to just go, not during the war. But he was in enemy territory. He was not safe. He felt as though he never would be safe again, stuck here forever. He missed his home, his family, his dogs, his friends, he missed his food, his songs, his language. It was all gone. Ludwig walked down to the water's edge, looking as far as he could into the horizon, hoping that if he tried hard enough, he could see Europe.

He knew that was a foolish thought, but he just wanted to get home.

"Hey, you 'kay?" Ludwig jolted at the noise, turning around to see Alfred reaching out for him.

"What are?" Ludwig tried to ask.

"I could ask the same of you." Alfred smiled. "It's around 2 in the morning, and you're on the beach. Are you ok?" Alfred's faced looked concerned.

"Just a nightmare, is all." Ludwig admitted.

"The ocean help you out?" Alfred stood next to Ludwig, looking out into the dark.

"No."

"Then why are you out here?" Alfred asked, looking at Ludwig now.

"I don't really know." Ludwig looked down at the sand, gently kicking the grains into the ocean.

"Was it about your ship crash?" Alfred asked.

Ludwig nodded. "I just don't know if I could go back home."

Alfred looked puzzled. "I hadn't thought about that, honestly." He looked like he was focusing. "Where are you from anyway?" Alfred piqued.

"Here."

"This town?" Alfred's eyebrows rose up.

"No, America."

"I know that, but where?"

Ludwig knew nothing about American geography. He threw out a city he had heard of before. "Chicago." He looked away from Alfred.

"That's really far off." Alfred noted, rubbing his eyes.

Lucky guess. "Yeah." Ludwig agreed.

"But, why wouldn't you be able to go back?" Alfred fully faced Ludwig.

"My family died when I was a teenager, I joined the war efforts to get off the streets." Ludwig lied.

"Wow, your life really, it's shitty." Alfred chuckled in shock.

 _You have no idea_. Ludwig thought.

"You wanna stay here then?" Alfred asked.

"What?" Ludwig turned around to face Alfred.

"Stay here, in my beach house. I'll find you work, stay KIA and start over, forget your past." Alfred smiled.

Ludwig's heart was racing. Alfred sounded like he knew what Ludwig was hiding, but he seemed so genuine. " _Forget your past,"_ what was he insinuating? "I don't know," Ludwig backed up.

Alfred stepped forward. "You don't have to, but just know that you don't have to go back to the streets. You have a home here." Alfred's eyes shone a darker shade of blue in the moonlight. His eyes, were so kind, so open. Ludwig felt his heart race faster, but he couldn't figure out why. Alfred reached out for his shoulder. "I wanna help you, I don't know why, but I feel like I should help you, so I will." They stared at each other for a moment before Ludwig nodded.

"Thank you." Ludwig said.

"Not a problem," Alfred responded. They walked back up to the small house together, the tension in Ludwig finally gone. Alfred stopped in front of his door. "Get some sleep, we'll try finding you work tomorrow."

Ludwig smiled. "Ok, good night."

Alfred nodded in response, closing his door gently. Ludwig walked into his room, laid back down on his bed, and shut his eyes. He didn't have his home, he didn't have his family, he didn't have his language, but he had Alfred's kindness, he had Alfred's friendship, he had his trust, and he had a friend in a land of enemies. _I can do this, I will survive this war._ Ludwig thought before falling back asleep.


End file.
